Daily Republican., 1887-10-10
rns GAY ExCUsslON.

We focked In with Q Sunday school
excursion which went down from
Sioux Falls to Spirit Lake. Ia, one
day last week. Some 1900 people
went, and the stranger who saw the
procession was invariably impressed
with the great number Of "grown up"
people who were evidently connected
with the Sunday schools Of this city.
One young lady admitted, alter she
got on the train, that she was under
81, and the conductor was going to
stop and put her off Three or four
hundred gray and baldheaded men,
bers of some infant Class struggled
onto the train with baskets of lunch
con In their bands.
On the way down the man who
said that an accident always happens to
an excursion train wandered from car
TO car and asked every one who would
talk with him how many he supposed
would be killed on this train when 1t
went over the embankment or through
a bridge. The conductor finally COM
piled with the unanimous request of
the passengers and stopped the train
near Rock Rapids and the accident
man was lynched. The conductor
was very courteous and seemed bound
to please.
Arriving at Spirit Lake everybody
went over to the picnic grounds and
ate dinner.
The ham sandwich was extracted
from the lemon pie and the sponge
cake was probed with the hope Of re-
covering the hard boiled eggs.
The mustard was scraped from the
cold chicken and regrets were express
ed that the custard pie should have
thought best TO run out the bottom of
the basket.
The cold tea which had been 30
carefully bottled up was wrung out OF
the napkins, and the warm. mellow
lemonade was drank with grasshop-
per in it.
After dinner the Sunday school
scholars were surprised and gratified
to find that the authorities or railroad
company or somebody had provided q
class of amusements peculiarly fitted
for the young. There were some
twenty five or thirty gentlemen on the
grounds giving their whole time to
conducting innocent and instructive
games for children.
The nutshell game was the favorite,
and some five or elk studious young
men were explaining Its workings at
the same time on different parts of the
grounds. 1t was quite difficult for
some of the members of the infant
class to tell which shell the little ball
| was under. One member of the inter-
mediate class paid $85 and then didn't
find it.
A gray-bearded old philanthropist
opened up game of faro under the
spreading boughs of a grand old oak
ON the lake shore and did good bust
ness.
Another gentleman ran keno game
under a cottonwood tree, while still
others sold ten-dollar bills wrapped
around small pieces of soap or dis
posed of machine-forged jewelry at a
great discount 1t was a beautiful
scene, and the children derived great
benefit. The City Marshal looked on
approvingly, and smilingly said that
he liked to see the little ones improv-
ing their minds.
Some fault was found that the regu.
lar picnic thunder shower did not CONF
up in the afternoon. Those having the
excursion in charge claimed that they
were not to blame for its non-appear r
ance.
Ga the return trip, when the train
was about half a mile from Sioux
Falls, the engineer put out the fire tc
save fuel and the train stopped. After
the excursion found out the state OF
things they dropped off and walked
into town.
Some people claim that fellow does
not get any rest by going on an excur.
sion, as he generally works hard g
week before to get ready and then puts
in the hardest day of all when he goes
but this is not so-an excursion gen
orally makes him sick abed tor a week
after he gets back, and that is the time
he gets his rest.